RWC REPORT: Not drafted, but no slouch

By Matthew Wuest - RedWingsCentral.com / January 12, 2009

When you hear the Detroit Red Wings talk about Brian Lashoff, it's hard to fathom how the 6-foot-3, 190-pound defenseman wasn't drafted.

The way he's been playing this season, the Red Wings couldn't be happier they almost immediately scooped him up as a free agent.

"To me, he's just going upward," said Red Wings scout Mark Leach. "He's skating well, he's moving the puck, making smart decisions. He's physical, he plays the body, he defends the net well and he finishes checks with authority.

"It was a great signing. We're ecstatic with how he's developed and played."

	Brian Lashoff gets some pointers from Red Wings director of player development Jiri Fischer at training camp last fall. (Photo: Sarah Lindenau).

Lashoff, who signed a three-year contract with the Red Wings in October, has two goals and 16 assists and is a minus-10 in 40 games in the Ontario Hockey League this season. The Albany, N.Y., native started the campaign with the Barrie Colts, but was traded mid-year to the Kingston Frontenacs.

The Frontenacs are by far the worst team in the OHL with a 9-28-4-3 record, and Lashoff has had a chance to showcase his well-rounded skill-set. He is the club's top-scoring blue-liner and is a defensive anchor.

"He's getting power-play time, he plays in a lot of crucial situations in tight games, up a goal, down a goal, last minute of the period," said Leach. "He gets a ton of ice time and by doing that he's gaining a lot of confidence."

Lashoff, the younger brother of Boston Bruins defenseman Matt, projects as at least a No. 4 to 6 blue-liner if he makes it to the NHL.

BRENDAN'S BAD BREAK: Defenseman Brendan Smith (Wisconsin, NCAA) suffered a broken wrist and will miss about a month. It's the second notable injury for the skilled defenseman in as many years, as he also had a bulging disc in his back that forced him to miss the second half of last season.

MR. ZERO? Goaltender Daniel Larsson (Grand Rapids, AHL) recorded his league-leading fifth shutout of the season this week. He continues to post sparkling numbers that sit among the top five in the entire league.

Larsson was honored for his success this season with a spot on the AHL's PlanetUSA team for the all-star game on Jan. 26 in Worcester, Mass. Sophomore blue-liner Jakub Kindl, who is fifth in AHL defensemen scoring with 24 points in 39 games, also earned a spot on the team.

McCOLLUM MOVED: Goaltender Thomas McCollum has been traded from the Guelph Storm to the Brampton Battalion following a shaky world junior. The Battalion are one of the OHL's top five teams.

SILVER, AGAIN: Forward Joakim Andersson (Frolunda, Swedish Elite League) won his second straight silver medal at the IIHF world junior championship. Sweden lost 5-1 to Canada in the gold-medal game, but Andersson scored his team's lone goal. He played on the second line and was an assistant captain.

Andersson had two goals and four assists in six games, while recording six penalty minutes and a plus-7. But perhaps his most impressive stat was his 59.8 percent faceoff rate, an illustration of one of his biggest strengths.

LEINO ON TRACK: Forward Ville Leino (Grand Rapids, American Hockey League) appears to be back on track. After a horrendous slump (17-1-7-8), Leino has four goals and six assists for 10 points in his last 10 games.

For all his ups and downs, he had 33 points in 37 games this season, leading the Griffins in scoring and 30th in the league.

The following is an up-to-date statistical report for skaters:

NAME	TEAM	LEAGUE	GP	G	A	PTS	PIM
A H L
Ville Leino	Grand Rapids	AHL	37	9	24	33	10
Darren Helm	Grand Rapids	AHL	35	10	17	27	14
Mattias Ritola	Grand Rapids	AHL	38	14	13	27	22
Justin Abdelkader	Grand Rapids	AHL	37	12	13	25	55
Jakub Kindl	Grand Rapids	AHL	39	5	19	24	38
Evan McGrath	Grand Rapids	AHL	31	8	15	23	6
Cory Emmerton	Grand Rapids	AHL	34	3	14	17	14
Ryan Oulahen	Grand Rapids	AHL	39	9	3	12	19
Jamie Tardif	Grand Rapids	AHL	31	7	4	11	19
Jonathan Ericsson	Grand Rapids	AHL	31	1	10	11	38
Logan Pyett	Grand Rapids	AHL	29	1	7	8	4
Sergei Kolosov	Grand Rapids	AHL	32	0	6	6	18
Jan Mursak	Grand Rapids	AHL	21	0	3	3	6
K H L
Gennady Stolyarov	Astana Barys	KHL	32	11	8	19	18
Miroslav Blatak	Salavat Yulaev	KHL	39	2	8	10	14
S W E D E N
Dick Axelsson	Farjestad	SEL	25	6	13	19	14
Anton Axelsson	Timra	SEL	36	4	4	8	0
Joakim Andersson	Frolunda	SEL	32	2	6	8	14
Jesper Samuelsson	Timra	SEL	37	2	1	3	10
Joakim Andersson	Boras	SWE-2	4	2	2	4	2
Johan Ryno	AIK	SWE-2	9	2	2	4	8
Jesper Samuelsson	Sundsvall	SWE-2	5	0	1	1	4
C H L
Randy Cameron	Moncton	QMJHL	38	12	25	37	16
Brent Raedeke	Edmonton	WHL	45	12	25	37	54
Zack Torquato	Erie	OHL	40	17	18	35	56
Stephen Johnston	Belleville	OHL	39	12	20	32	20
Brian Lashoff	Kingston	OHL	40	2	16	18	31
N C A A
Gustav Nyquist	Maine	HE	20	9	9	18	18
Brendan Smith	Wisconsin	WCHA	21	7	11	18	40
Julien Cayer	Clarkson	WCHA	15	2	6	8	20
Bryan Rufenach	Clarkson	ECAC	18	3	4	7	28
Nick Oslund	St. Cloud State	WCHA	20	4	2	5	22
Nils Backstrom	Alaska-Anchorage	WCHA	18	2	1	3	20
U S H L
Max Nicastro	Chicago	USHL	29	6	15	21	52

The following is an up-to-date statistical report for goaltenders:

NAME	TEAM	LEAGUE	GP	W-L-O	GAA	SPCT
Thomas McCollum	Brampton	OHL	33	18-11-4	2.27	.924
Daniel Larsson	Grand Rapids	AHL	21	14-4-1	2.31	.924
Jimmy Howard	Grand Rapids	AHL	21	9-9-2	2.59	.904

LEAGUE LEGEND: AHL — American Hockey League; KHL — Kontinental Hockey League; SEL — Swedish Elite League; SWE-2 — Swedish Allsvenskan (second level); OHL — Ontario Hockey League; WHL — Western Hockey League; QMJHL — Quebec Major Junior Hockey League; WCHA — Western Collegiate Hockey Association; ECAC — East Coast Athletic Conference; HE — Hockey East; USHL — United States Hockey League.